Theater Fund Files Suit To Protect TKTS Name

Published: July 17, 2001

The Theater Development Fund, which runs the TKTS discount ticket booths in Times Square and downtown Manhattan, filed suit yesterday in London over the use of the booths' name.

The fund argued that its British counterpart, Solt, the Society of London Theater -- formerly Society of West End Theater, or Swet -- unlawfully used TKTS in Leicester Square for its half-price booth, formerly known as the Half-Price Ticket Booth. ''We cannot permit other people to use our name unless we are in control,'' said John Breglio, the chairman of the fund and a prominent lawyer in the theater community. ''We spent more than 30 years protecting our trademark. We can't let somebody else just take it.''

Martin McCallum, the president of Solt, and Rupert Rhymes, its chief executive, could not be reached for comment.

Mr. Breglio said the fund had tried to settle the matter verbally since January 2000, when Solt came to the fund to see if it could negotiate a license to use the TKTS name. The fund refused and offered to help Solt come up with an alternative, Mr. Breglio said, but earlier this month, Solt put up a TKTS sign at its discount booth.